More than a dozen states are on track to assign A-F letter grades to schools, among the trends highlighted in a first-of-its-kind database published by the Education Commission of the States.
The online database shows which indicators states are considering in gauging school performance and how state leaders are publicly reporting on that performance to parents and others.
Letter grades for schools, which have been controversial in some states, appear to be an increasingly popular tool for policymakers. In 2002, only one state — Florida — assigned letter grades to schools.
Among some of the highlights of the analysis:
- 14 states assign, or have passed legislation to assign, letter grades to schools. Ohio, Texas and Virginia are scheduled to begin letter grading systems in 2014 and 2015.
- All 50 states and the District of Columbia consider student achievement as measured by test results in their performance indicators.
- 37 states and D.C. factor in student growth or improvement on tests in deciding school performance. That’s up from 21 in 2002.
- 44 states and D.C. consider graduation rates in determining school performance while 12 states include dropout rates.
- 9 states weigh growth of the lowest-performing quartile of students in judging their schools.
Kathy Christie, ECS vice president and co-director of its Information Clearinghouse, said the database marks the first comprehensive look at how states are measuring and reporting school performance. Some data are comparable to previous years, when more limited analysis was completed.
For more information, please visit:
http://www.ecs.org/html/educationissues/accountability/stacc_intro.asp
